WEBVTT
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Welcome to Beware Mysterious Mark, a ten-part series about financial elder abuse.
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Our goal is to expose how these schemes work, reveal the warning signs, and help you stop it before it happens to someone you love.
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In our last episode, Bert was declared capable under questionable circumstances.
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Despite this, Bert's bank kept his accounts frozen for months, refusing to accept Mark as new power of attorney.
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And Brooke waited to hear from the public guardian and trustee.
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Now here's episode 10, the finale, titled I Could Do Without Mark.
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In April, the rep called to say the public guardian and trustee had accepted the veracity of Brooke's third-party evidence of financial manipulation, and that Bert had already accepted an appointment for a new capacity assessment by Dr.
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Koupar.
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Then in early May, we discovered that Bert had refused to see Dr.
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Koupar.
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Instead, he was to be assessed by another GP, and we were not entitled to know the GP's name.
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We were very worried.
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We knew the PGT allows the senior to pick their assessor, but puzzled over how Bert's team found one during COVID within two weeks.
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In late May, our PGT rep informed us that Bert had been determined capable of managing his finances and his file would be closed.
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Stupefied, we requested a review, but received a boilerplate, no response.
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During the review, we learned that the PGT had put a lot of weight on the fact that Bert had found his own lawyer.
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Did they honestly believe that the 97-year-old had searched out, visited, and worked with a lawyer all by himself?
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The thought was ludicrous and profoundly disappointing.
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Remember, it took a motivated mark, many phone calls, and at least four in-person attempts with other legal professionals before he roped in Bert's current dubious lawyer.
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About a year later, Brooke discovered the assessing GP's name by accident.
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Within minutes, Google informed her that this GP had been suspended twice for improper conduct and was ranked in the bottom five percentile of all doctors in our province.
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We believe had we known the name of this GP up front, we would have demanded and received a different assessor, and possibly a different result.
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Huge implications.
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Also, we discovered that Birds Bank had requested a review of the PGT's results, but it was refused.
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And thus ends our mind-numbing experiences in Black Hole Number Two.
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Close Encounters with the PGT.
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Brooke decided it was time to be direct and reached out to Donna Hatcher to meet and see if they could improve and clarify communications.
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I was againn it, believing this would be akin to a dazed kitten expecting reassurance from a rabid fox.
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But Brooke bravely met with Donna, turned on her recording app, and invited Donna to do the same.
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Donna arrogantly refused.
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Surprise, surprise.
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My beloved was taken to the cleaners by the aggressive truth compromised femme fatale of Poplar Hill.
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Donna instantly attacked Brooke, while briskly whitewashing her own reputation.
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Brooke tried hard, but her attempts to provide truths were either slapped away like inconvenient flies or twisted negatively back upon her.
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By the end of June, everyone was suffering under an unprecedented heat dome.
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On my regular reconnaissance checks of Poplar Hill, I noticed Bert's previously clean and nearly empty double garage was now bursting at the rafters, shelf upon shelf lined with boxes, bins, bags, and other paraphernalia.
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We wondered.
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A few days later, Brooke received a call from her dad's neighbor Anne, who had noticed Mark and Donna were now openly living in the recreational vehicle.
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Their story?
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They were temporarily camping out while their landlord renovated their bathroom.
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Three weeks later, same story told to another neighbor.
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So why are these people camped on his doorstep?
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On July 31st, Anne phoned again.
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A large moving van is now parked in Bert's driveway, and folks are unloading furniture.
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Tons of stuff.
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Do you know about this?
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I know nothing about it.
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I just asked that woman if Brooke knows they're moving in, and she said yes, Brooke knows all about it.
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Bill, that never happened.
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Remember, Bert had consistently maintained his position not to have Donna and Mark live with him.
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In fact, he expected them to camp out in the RV, only if and when he needed help, not before.
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So I can now report that Mark and Donna's ultimate goal to be given a home base is finally achieved via a sneaky double play.
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First, they bunted quietly onto the Poplar Hill property by temporarily living in the RV.
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And second, they blatantly stole the remaining bases to land right on home plate.
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AKA, the front foyer of the house.
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Tada! Home run, big win, mission accomplished, high fives all around, settling in for the future.
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By contrast, our dugout was eerily quiet, and our team had no plans, not even for the following day.
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In late September, a cousin named Joan visited Bert, as she had done yearly since his wife's death.
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Fearing the worst, we armed her with our portable recording device.
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Thank heavens, because over two dreadful hours, ninety-seven-year-old Bert, Mark, and Donna took turns verbally lashing out at her, hurling lies and criticisms about Brooke, her mum, me, the bank, and the health authority.
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In the garage.
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Joan was not even allowed in the house.
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We have every shameful word they spat out.
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Majority not suitable for mass consumption, but I think you should hear a few lies.
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Mark told me you rang him up and told him all sorts of nasty things.
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You know it's it's not fair, not fair at all.
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Oh, that's not true.
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I didn't say nasty things.
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Well, you said they were looking after me for my money.
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I didn't say that.
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I'm sorry, Joan.
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Well I have to believe Mark.
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He's my family now.
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As soon as Brooke tried to get Bert's POA to control everything, that's when the shit hit the fan.
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I've got to be with Mark.
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On my lonesome, my ability to carry words are restricted.
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I have a vocabulary that's getting narrower and narrower.
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I don't mind it.
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I don't talk to many people.
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So Mark is my voice in many respects.
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He's not doing it for money.
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Our house was melting.
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The floor was rotting.
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Our landlord took out our ensuite and he told us we're gonna have to get you out of here pretty quick, because the floor under your tub is rotting.
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So we knew we were going to have to find a place, which there was nowhere, and Albert said, You know what?
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This was gonna happen anyhow.
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Let's get you in now.
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He wanted us here.
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Could I have one last opportunity?
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Because I'm here to speak with Richard.
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Well, I'm here to speak for Richard as well.
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But no, I hear he needs you for some things, but I think he and I can have a nice conversation.
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No, no, you can't.
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You are biased.
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You can't have a conversation with me because you're not totally on my side.
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Brooke got the lawyer involved, then Bert had to get a lawyer.
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You know what Nancy said to us?
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We're going to make sure you can't get a lawyer, because we're going to tell everybody the kind of people you are.
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Then Albert said, You know what?
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If Nancy was gone, Brooke probably would be a better person.
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And I agree with him because Nancy is the instigator.
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A couple of follow-ups.
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Joan was so distraught, she stumbled over to the next door neighbors Anne and Phil, and thank heavens received their moral support before returning to our house.
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And we later confirmed with Mark and Donna's landlord that all this you have to get out pretty quick threat was malarky.
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Their apartment had a second serviceable bathroom.
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Repairs were underway, and legally the landlord couldn't evict tenants to undertake repairs.
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But given Bert's reluctance to have them move onto his property, we realized Donna and Mark seized this excuse to convince the old man they were homeless and that living with him in Poplar Hill was inevitable.
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Once Mark and Donna moved in, they seemed to almost forget Bert as they tucked into retirement life.
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As an example, before the move, the couple always came around to assist Bert in walking to his rural mailbox.
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An activity Donna never stopped crowing about to anyone in earshot.
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After the move in, Bert toddled the 600 yards on his own.
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And about a year later, Donna Hatcher worked her last shift and retired, at least five years before her modest pension would have kicked in, without Bert's generosity.
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What we've described so far has felt like a lifetime.
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But really, we were only two years and seven months into the couple's never-ending campaign, which started in earnest following Diane Cooper's death.
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Somehow, Brooke and her dad formed a temporary peace, and cautiously Brooke began visiting him once again.
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Mindful of Donna and Mark's negative influence, she took her dad away from Poplar Hill for leisurely drives and lunches.
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Brooke kept the conversation light, avoiding anything controversial.
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For the first time in years, the father and daughter were happy again with one another's company, even if only on a superficial level.
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In the spring and summer of 2023, Mark and Donna set a new low for attentive caregiving, leaving Bert for about six hours, six days a week.
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Mark wanted to fix up his wreck of a boat in advance of selling before it sank.
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Remember before the move in?
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Mark called Bert every single day at ten AM and seldom missed a daily visit.
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Now the creeps told Bert, We won't call you, and don't you call us except in an emergency.
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This for six or more hours a day for months.
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Dr.
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Kupara zeroed in on another caregiver oversight when ninety-nine year old Bert, accompanied by Brooke, came to follow up on an x-ray.
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Nice to see the two of you together.
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We're not enemies.
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How are you feeling, Mr.
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Cooper?
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Fine.
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Well, the x-ray I ordered reveal you have a broken rib.
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Now I'm concerned that you had a bad fall, and you have a broken rib, and that we only discovered it incidentally when you came in for your prescription refill.
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I'm concerned about that.
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I don't think I've broken.
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I didn't fall.
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I crumpled.
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Were you alone?
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Yeah, I I pushed myself up.
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It wasn't broken.
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You have a broken rib, Mr.
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Cooper.
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Number seven.
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Have I really?
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Good lord.
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When a senior has a bad fall, they should be taken to emergency.
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Oh.
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That would be the right thing to do, but that didn't happen.
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The vanishing of her dad's caregivers enhanced Brooke's fragile relationship with Bert as they continued to see one another.
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Brooke was extremely grateful for this precious private time with her dad, and I admit the pair seemed to have some fun.
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During this ceasefire, which lasted two years, Brooke gained many worrying glimpses into her dad's new life with his caregivers.
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Bert was still reluctant to challenge Mark, or Donna, over even the smallest of things.
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As an example, Bert made a point of telling Brooke he wouldn't ask Donna to cut his toenails until they hurt.
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There was an obvious imbalance of power with Mark at the top and Bert at the bottom.
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This concern was supported by psychiatrist Dr.
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Becker, who told Brooke that there was a ton of coercion in the relationship between her dad and the creeps.
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Bert's strong belief that Donna has had a tough life remained central in his mind.
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Bert told Brooke some erroneous details about one of Donna's former partners.
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Bert believed this man took all of Donna's savings, and at that time, Mark, surprise, surprise, financially bailed her out, which landed Donna in a position of obligation.
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Contrast this with Donna's own statement to Brooke a couple of years earlier, that in fact this partner number two was her knight in shining armor.
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Also, Bert continued to believe the tale about noble Donna walking away from a$2 million legal settlement.
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He often repeated his concern that she could never make that money up.
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So it became alarmingly clear to Brooke that her dad had believed for some years that he was now responsible for financially supporting poor had a hard life, Donna.
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As a curious aside, Bert easily overlooked the fact that Mark hadn't worked for over 23 years and was quite happy to let Donna subsidize him.
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Please, please tell me why Bert Cooper admires this useless man.
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Over the years, Bert's made a lot of strange and worrying comments to Brooke, but we've decided to reveal just a few provided during the two year ceasefire.
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Some of those illustrate that, despite living in his own home with his supposedly loving best friends, at times Bert appears fearful and uncomfortable.
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We're both so saddened by the truths hiding in some of Bert's statements, like Mark's in control of everything.
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It's a bit heavy handed, but you know, he's got all he ever wants.
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I could do without Mark.
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Don't ever tell him because he thinks that I love him dearly, but there is something about him that I don't like.
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His indifference to people.
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You know, I don't like that.
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Mark doesn't give a thought about me.
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I can't say I really like Mark.
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But he's awfully good to me in some respects.
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Donna's a real dear.
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She's nice to me, but she has a flaring temper.
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Just goes crazy for three or four minutes.
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I don't go into the room Mark's using as a studio because I'm afraid there may be a camera.
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During the last twenty-four months, Poplar Hill has undergone numerous renovations, all to benefit Mark and Donna.
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First up, new top-of-the-line kitchen and laundry appliances soon grace the now cluttered home.
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About a year later, a number of established trees took the ultimate hit to allow for a new metal roof and forty solar panels.
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I ask you, given an estimated twenty or so year payback, how much is old Bert going to benefit from this over$100,000 expense?
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And by the way, when Brooke discovered all this after the fact, of course, she offered to pay her share as usual, but Bert declined.
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A nice gesture from him, I think.
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When Mark and Bert applied to the municipality for a permit to take five trees down, Mark strongly inferred that he was Bert's son, and that Brooke was his difficult and estranged sister who wanted nothing to do with her dad or Poplar Hill.
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Come on, who lies like that?
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In May of 2024, all hell broke loose at Poplar Hill.
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In a classic underhanded move, Mark and Donna had a second driveway bulldozed across the Cooper's property without any permits and without Brooke's knowledge or involvement.
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After seeing a 200-foot gash being ripped through Poplar Hill's woody side yard, a neighbor complained to the municipality.
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The municipality reps immediately placed a stop work order and informed Brooke.
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Mark and Donna scrambled to protect themselves.
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First, they blamed the contractor for not getting the permits.
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Then they criticized the municipality for fudging its rules.
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And finally, they condemned Brooke for not signing the permits.
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Of course, Bert couldn't accept that his friends were in the wrong, so with a little nudge, he believed Brook was the culprit.
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Incredibly, the entire mess lasted months, with Mark endlessly submitting ridiculous legal arguments and was still an ongoing issue with the municipality in early 2025.
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The creeps wrote letters to our lawyer, to the municipality, and eventually to Brooke herself, trying to salvage the driveway disaster by boasting about their caregiving attributes and slandering Brook's personality, actions, and reputation.
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In a missive to Simon, Mark calls Brooke an apparently delusional client and states.
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To put it bluntly, she is lying to you and the municipality.
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This email addressed to Simon ends with a prophetic bang to
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Food for thought, Brook.
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The laws of karma are far more powerful than those made by a man.
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There's something highly satisfying when karma strikes.
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More about that prophetic bang later.
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In another letter, Donna writes directly to Brooke, supposedly on Bert's behalf.
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I feel deceived by you and your mom from keeping secret my name not being on the title of the home I've lived in at Poplar Hill since Diane and I, not you, purchased the home over thirty years ago.
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Okay.
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I won't trash the appalling syntax, but I will respond firstly by reminding you that lo those many years ago, Bert was with Diane and Brooke when the Coopers determined the ownership of Poplar Hill.
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And secondly, to let you in on one of our secrets.
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Brooke originally paid 24% of the purchase price of Poplar Hill.
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This because of the family plan that Brooke and I might move in sometime in the future to help out.
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In the same note, Bert supposedly also claims.
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Donna and Mark have put their lives on hold for me, Brooke.
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Can you say the same?
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I'm sure you'll forgive me while I scream and pound the wall for a moment.
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What self-serving hogwash.
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Prior to meeting vulnerable benefactor Bert Cooper, Mark and Donna were financially impoverished, living in a crummy rental and lacking pensions or assets.
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And now Donna, who formerly faced many years of full-time work, took early retirement.
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She now owned one half of a million dollar plus executive home, expected to receive twice as much cash upon Bert's death, and along with Mark was enjoying life as the Chatelaine of Poplar Hill.
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Good grief.
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If that's what Bert believes putting one's life on hold for him means, sign me the frig up.
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So enough of their petty, nasty vitriol.
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Suffice it to say, there was much, much more.
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Okay.
00:24:34.240 --> 00:24:44.240
As of 2025, Donna and Mark were still living with the now 101-year-old Bert in Poplar Hill.
00:24:45.359 --> 00:24:48.720
I'm nearing the end of recounting our saga.
00:24:48.960 --> 00:24:53.039
Though of course the saga itself has yet to end.
00:24:53.920 --> 00:25:02.079
But let's go out the way we came in, with Mark on stage taking control of Bert Cooper's life and assets.
00:25:02.799 --> 00:25:06.799
Brooke received a phone call from Franklin, a municipal staffer.
00:25:07.039 --> 00:25:14.000
Well, they had your dad pretty riled up, ready to go, bring him in basically to fight out the claim they're going to keep going with the driveway.
00:25:14.240 --> 00:25:18.640
Mark and Donna kept asking, Well, can we still use it as a driveway?
00:25:18.799 --> 00:25:22.160
I said, No, you're going to damage the tree roots again.
00:25:22.400 --> 00:25:24.160
You'll be up for fines again.
00:25:24.319 --> 00:25:26.079
They said, now, what are we going to do?
00:25:26.240 --> 00:25:30.799
I just said, not all owners agree on the driveway, and we need full agreement.
00:25:30.960 --> 00:25:32.880
So the driveway's off the books.
00:25:33.279 --> 00:25:39.119
That just there set Mark right off, and he rushes over to your dad, who's just sat down and starts mumbling to him.
00:25:39.359 --> 00:25:46.720
I don't think your dad said anything, except Mark comes running back to the counter and says, Bert's just said that he'd give Donna his share of Popper Hill.
00:25:47.039 --> 00:25:48.480
Can we have the driveway now?
00:25:48.720 --> 00:25:49.839
Oh my God.
00:25:50.160 --> 00:25:51.920
I said no, wouldn't make a difference.
00:25:52.079 --> 00:25:59.279
That really upset Mark to hear that you, Brooke, still have signing thirty, and we won't let things happen without your approval.
00:25:59.599 --> 00:26:00.400
Thank you.
00:26:00.720 --> 00:26:01.759
That's good.
00:26:02.240 --> 00:26:04.400
Mark does like to be in control.
00:26:05.119 --> 00:26:07.519
He doesn't like you to say no to him.
00:26:07.920 --> 00:26:10.960
But your dad was so fostered, Brooke, it was sickening.
00:26:11.039 --> 00:26:13.119
I had no time, no way of talking to him.
00:26:13.279 --> 00:26:15.839
He's pretty much convinced by this Mark and Donna.
00:26:16.240 --> 00:26:22.720
I really wish we had our front counter and camera, because that piece of footage probably would have been very good in your case.
00:26:23.759 --> 00:26:26.160
Do I even have to comment?
00:26:26.480 --> 00:26:27.200
Jeez.
00:26:28.720 --> 00:26:32.240
Remember my remark about a prophetic bang?
00:26:32.960 --> 00:26:37.759
Well, it appears we have our own bit of positive karma happening.
00:26:38.079 --> 00:26:46.160
Because one morning in March of 2025, Brooke received a phone call which brightened our world.
00:26:47.279 --> 00:26:50.960
Mark Marshall was dead.
00:26:52.000 --> 00:26:54.880
Taken out by a massive heart attack.
00:26:55.200 --> 00:26:58.720
I admit to wild and crazy dancing.
00:27:00.319 --> 00:27:05.519
This is truly one of those gifts that keeps on giving.
00:27:06.000 --> 00:27:12.720
It continually gives us hope, pleasure, and a little peace.
00:27:14.960 --> 00:27:24.160
As of this moment, Bert Cooper's alive, a hundred and two, and living in Poplar Hill with Donna.
00:27:24.799 --> 00:27:31.839
And far as we know, there have been no more visits from local health authority professionals or the police.
00:27:33.200 --> 00:27:40.160
Following Mark's death, Brooke girded her loins and visited her dad to offer condolences.
00:27:40.799 --> 00:27:48.880
Bert appeared unfazed by Mark's death and only demanded that Brooke sign the permits for the unauthorized driveway.
00:27:49.440 --> 00:27:55.839
Brooke refused and immediately left, her father's bellowing filling her ears.
00:27:57.519 --> 00:28:07.759
As I've mentioned, the stress and pain of the last seven years has changed Brooke and me.
00:28:08.799 --> 00:28:14.319
We've been hurt and regrettably we've hurt one another.
00:28:15.599 --> 00:28:21.759
Thankfully, our wounds are healing, but the scars remain.
00:28:23.200 --> 00:28:26.720
I often think how hard it's been for Bert.
00:28:27.359 --> 00:28:36.079
Instead of living in peace and enjoyment, his twilight years have been chaotic, troubled, and emotional.
00:28:37.119 --> 00:28:46.559
At this juncture, Brooke and I are, as the saying goes, bowed, but not broken.
00:28:47.759 --> 00:29:06.160
Today's episode features the voices of Susan Anderson as Nancy, Susan Wilkie as Brooke, Vi Glossip as Ann, Matt Watson as Phil, Andy Dawson Reed as Bert, Jason Stevens as Mark, Brooke Cooper and Nancy Miles as Joan, Jane Wynne as Donna, Sunaiti Arens as Dr.
00:29:06.319 --> 00:29:09.599
Kapar, and Dennis Lindquist as Franklin.
00:29:09.839 --> 00:29:11.920
This is a production of Radio Sydney.
00:29:12.000 --> 00:29:20.640
With support from the Government of Canada's New Horizons program for seniors, the series was produced by Bill Collins, written by Nancy Miles and Brooke Cooper.
00:29:20.799 --> 00:29:26.160
Dramatization was directed by Matt Watson with sound engineering by Bill Collins.
00:29:26.400 --> 00:29:28.000
I'm Barry Bowman.
00:29:33.680 --> 00:29:38.079
You've been listening to an original broadcast of Radio Sydney.
00:29:38.319 --> 00:29:45.039
Coming to you from the Mary Wynn Spears Center in downtown Sydney by the Sea in beautiful British Columbia.
00:29:45.599 --> 00:29:48.799
Thanks for listening, and please join us again.
00:00:19.039 --> 00:00:24.079
Welcome to Beware Mysterious Mark, a ten-part series about financial elder abuse.
00:00:24.239 --> 00:00:31.679
Our goal is to expose how these schemes work, reveal the warning signs, and help you stop it before it happens to someone you love.
00:00:32.000 --> 00:00:37.039
In our last episode, Bert was declared capable under questionable circumstances.
00:00:37.200 --> 00:00:43.920
Despite this, Bert's bank kept his accounts frozen for months, refusing to accept Mark as new power of attorney.
00:00:44.000 --> 00:00:47.200
And Brooke waited to hear from the public guardian and trustee.
00:00:47.439 --> 00:00:52.320
Now here's episode 10, the finale, titled I Could Do Without Mark.
00:00:54.640 --> 00:01:11.120
In April, the rep called to say the public guardian and trustee had accepted the veracity of Brooke's third-party evidence of financial manipulation, and that Bert had already accepted an appointment for a new capacity assessment by Dr.
00:01:11.280 --> 00:01:11.840
Koupar.
00:01:13.120 --> 00:01:18.560
Then in early May, we discovered that Bert had refused to see Dr.
00:01:18.799 --> 00:01:19.359
Koupar.
00:01:20.079 --> 00:01:27.760
Instead, he was to be assessed by another GP, and we were not entitled to know the GP's name.
00:01:28.079 --> 00:01:30.159
We were very worried.
00:01:30.480 --> 00:01:40.719
We knew the PGT allows the senior to pick their assessor, but puzzled over how Bert's team found one during COVID within two weeks.
00:01:41.760 --> 00:01:53.760
In late May, our PGT rep informed us that Bert had been determined capable of managing his finances and his file would be closed.
00:01:54.239 --> 00:02:00.719
Stupefied, we requested a review, but received a boilerplate, no response.
00:02:02.239 --> 00:02:10.719
During the review, we learned that the PGT had put a lot of weight on the fact that Bert had found his own lawyer.
00:02:11.680 --> 00:02:21.120
Did they honestly believe that the 97-year-old had searched out, visited, and worked with a lawyer all by himself?
00:02:21.439 --> 00:02:25.680
The thought was ludicrous and profoundly disappointing.
00:02:26.159 --> 00:02:39.360
Remember, it took a motivated mark, many phone calls, and at least four in-person attempts with other legal professionals before he roped in Bert's current dubious lawyer.
00:02:40.400 --> 00:02:46.319
About a year later, Brooke discovered the assessing GP's name by accident.
00:02:46.560 --> 00:03:00.080
Within minutes, Google informed her that this GP had been suspended twice for improper conduct and was ranked in the bottom five percentile of all doctors in our province.
00:03:00.879 --> 00:03:10.639
We believe had we known the name of this GP up front, we would have demanded and received a different assessor, and possibly a different result.
00:03:11.199 --> 00:03:13.039
Huge implications.
00:03:13.919 --> 00:03:21.599
Also, we discovered that Birds Bank had requested a review of the PGT's results, but it was refused.
00:03:22.879 --> 00:03:28.159
And thus ends our mind-numbing experiences in Black Hole Number Two.
00:03:28.560 --> 00:03:31.439
Close Encounters with the PGT.
00:03:33.520 --> 00:03:42.879
Brooke decided it was time to be direct and reached out to Donna Hatcher to meet and see if they could improve and clarify communications.
00:03:43.439 --> 00:03:51.919
I was againn it, believing this would be akin to a dazed kitten expecting reassurance from a rabid fox.
00:03:53.039 --> 00:04:00.400
But Brooke bravely met with Donna, turned on her recording app, and invited Donna to do the same.
00:04:00.800 --> 00:04:03.199
Donna arrogantly refused.
00:04:04.560 --> 00:04:06.560
Surprise, surprise.
00:04:07.199 --> 00:04:14.400
My beloved was taken to the cleaners by the aggressive truth compromised femme fatale of Poplar Hill.
00:04:14.719 --> 00:04:20.720
Donna instantly attacked Brooke, while briskly whitewashing her own reputation.
00:04:21.040 --> 00:04:32.079
Brooke tried hard, but her attempts to provide truths were either slapped away like inconvenient flies or twisted negatively back upon her.
00:04:34.079 --> 00:04:39.680
By the end of June, everyone was suffering under an unprecedented heat dome.
00:04:40.079 --> 00:04:57.839
On my regular reconnaissance checks of Poplar Hill, I noticed Bert's previously clean and nearly empty double garage was now bursting at the rafters, shelf upon shelf lined with boxes, bins, bags, and other paraphernalia.
00:04:58.560 --> 00:05:00.000
We wondered.
00:05:00.399 --> 00:05:10.319
A few days later, Brooke received a call from her dad's neighbor Anne, who had noticed Mark and Donna were now openly living in the recreational vehicle.
00:05:10.639 --> 00:05:11.839
Their story?
00:05:12.240 --> 00:05:18.079
They were temporarily camping out while their landlord renovated their bathroom.
00:05:18.399 --> 00:05:22.879
Three weeks later, same story told to another neighbor.
00:05:23.199 --> 00:05:26.720
So why are these people camped on his doorstep?
00:05:27.519 --> 00:05:31.199
On July 31st, Anne phoned again.
00:05:31.600 --> 00:05:38.079
A large moving van is now parked in Bert's driveway, and folks are unloading furniture.
00:05:38.399 --> 00:05:39.600
Tons of stuff.
00:05:39.759 --> 00:05:41.120
Do you know about this?
00:05:41.360 --> 00:05:43.120
I know nothing about it.
00:05:43.439 --> 00:05:50.000
I just asked that woman if Brooke knows they're moving in, and she said yes, Brooke knows all about it.
00:05:50.319 --> 00:05:52.560
Bill, that never happened.
00:05:53.759 --> 00:06:01.759
Remember, Bert had consistently maintained his position not to have Donna and Mark live with him.
00:06:02.160 --> 00:06:11.439
In fact, he expected them to camp out in the RV, only if and when he needed help, not before.
00:06:11.680 --> 00:06:22.879
So I can now report that Mark and Donna's ultimate goal to be given a home base is finally achieved via a sneaky double play.
00:06:23.199 --> 00:06:30.079
First, they bunted quietly onto the Poplar Hill property by temporarily living in the RV.
00:06:30.399 --> 00:06:36.800
And second, they blatantly stole the remaining bases to land right on home plate.
00:06:37.120 --> 00:06:40.560
AKA, the front foyer of the house.
00:06:40.800 --> 00:06:50.319
Tada! Home run, big win, mission accomplished, high fives all around, settling in for the future.
00:06:51.040 --> 00:07:00.959
By contrast, our dugout was eerily quiet, and our team had no plans, not even for the following day.
00:07:02.959 --> 00:07:10.160
In late September, a cousin named Joan visited Bert, as she had done yearly since his wife's death.
00:07:10.399 --> 00:07:15.360
Fearing the worst, we armed her with our portable recording device.
00:07:15.600 --> 00:07:33.199
Thank heavens, because over two dreadful hours, ninety-seven-year-old Bert, Mark, and Donna took turns verbally lashing out at her, hurling lies and criticisms about Brooke, her mum, me, the bank, and the health authority.
00:07:33.519 --> 00:07:34.800
In the garage.
00:07:35.360 --> 00:07:38.639
Joan was not even allowed in the house.
00:07:39.360 --> 00:07:42.879
We have every shameful word they spat out.
00:07:43.279 --> 00:07:49.199
Majority not suitable for mass consumption, but I think you should hear a few lies.
00:07:50.560 --> 00:07:54.959
Mark told me you rang him up and told him all sorts of nasty things.
00:07:55.120 --> 00:07:57.680
You know it's it's not fair, not fair at all.
00:07:58.079 --> 00:07:59.680
Oh, that's not true.
00:07:59.839 --> 00:08:01.519
I didn't say nasty things.
00:08:01.920 --> 00:08:04.480
Well, you said they were looking after me for my money.
00:08:04.879 --> 00:08:06.160
I didn't say that.
00:08:06.480 --> 00:08:07.839
I'm sorry, Joan.
00:08:08.000 --> 00:08:09.680
Well I have to believe Mark.
00:08:09.839 --> 00:08:11.519
He's my family now.
00:08:12.560 --> 00:08:18.959
As soon as Brooke tried to get Bert's POA to control everything, that's when the shit hit the fan.
00:08:20.560 --> 00:08:22.639
I've got to be with Mark.
00:08:22.879 --> 00:08:26.800
On my lonesome, my ability to carry words are restricted.
00:08:27.199 --> 00:08:31.439
I have a vocabulary that's getting narrower and narrower.
00:08:32.080 --> 00:08:33.360
I don't mind it.
00:08:33.519 --> 00:08:35.519
I don't talk to many people.
00:08:36.240 --> 00:08:38.960
So Mark is my voice in many respects.
00:08:39.600 --> 00:08:41.440
He's not doing it for money.
00:08:42.720 --> 00:08:44.240
Our house was melting.
00:08:44.399 --> 00:08:45.919
The floor was rotting.
00:08:46.399 --> 00:08:55.039
Our landlord took out our ensuite and he told us we're gonna have to get you out of here pretty quick, because the floor under your tub is rotting.
00:08:56.320 --> 00:09:04.159
So we knew we were going to have to find a place, which there was nowhere, and Albert said, You know what?
00:09:04.559 --> 00:09:06.240
This was gonna happen anyhow.
00:09:06.480 --> 00:09:08.000
Let's get you in now.
00:09:08.320 --> 00:09:09.919
He wanted us here.
00:09:10.559 --> 00:09:12.559
Could I have one last opportunity?
00:09:12.799 --> 00:09:14.639
Because I'm here to speak with Richard.
00:09:15.120 --> 00:09:17.840
Well, I'm here to speak for Richard as well.
00:09:18.320 --> 00:09:23.279
But no, I hear he needs you for some things, but I think he and I can have a nice conversation.
00:09:23.679 --> 00:09:25.679
No, no, you can't.
00:09:25.919 --> 00:09:27.440
You are biased.
00:09:27.840 --> 00:09:32.240
You can't have a conversation with me because you're not totally on my side.
00:09:33.600 --> 00:09:37.919
Brooke got the lawyer involved, then Bert had to get a lawyer.
00:09:38.159 --> 00:09:40.000
You know what Nancy said to us?
00:09:40.559 --> 00:09:47.039
We're going to make sure you can't get a lawyer, because we're going to tell everybody the kind of people you are.
00:09:47.759 --> 00:09:49.919
Then Albert said, You know what?
00:09:50.240 --> 00:09:54.799
If Nancy was gone, Brooke probably would be a better person.
00:09:55.039 --> 00:09:58.879
And I agree with him because Nancy is the instigator.
00:10:01.840 --> 00:10:03.759
A couple of follow-ups.
00:10:04.960 --> 00:10:15.360
Joan was so distraught, she stumbled over to the next door neighbors Anne and Phil, and thank heavens received their moral support before returning to our house.
00:10:15.840 --> 00:10:23.840
And we later confirmed with Mark and Donna's landlord that all this you have to get out pretty quick threat was malarky.
00:10:24.399 --> 00:10:27.679
Their apartment had a second serviceable bathroom.
00:10:27.919 --> 00:10:34.320
Repairs were underway, and legally the landlord couldn't evict tenants to undertake repairs.
00:10:34.799 --> 00:10:49.039
But given Bert's reluctance to have them move onto his property, we realized Donna and Mark seized this excuse to convince the old man they were homeless and that living with him in Poplar Hill was inevitable.
00:10:50.480 --> 00:10:59.279
Once Mark and Donna moved in, they seemed to almost forget Bert as they tucked into retirement life.
00:10:59.600 --> 00:11:07.679
As an example, before the move, the couple always came around to assist Bert in walking to his rural mailbox.
00:11:07.919 --> 00:11:12.799
An activity Donna never stopped crowing about to anyone in earshot.
00:11:13.519 --> 00:11:21.360
After the move in, Bert toddled the 600 yards on his own.
00:11:22.399 --> 00:11:35.120
And about a year later, Donna Hatcher worked her last shift and retired, at least five years before her modest pension would have kicked in, without Bert's generosity.
00:11:36.720 --> 00:11:40.720
What we've described so far has felt like a lifetime.
00:11:41.200 --> 00:11:52.000
But really, we were only two years and seven months into the couple's never-ending campaign, which started in earnest following Diane Cooper's death.
00:11:53.600 --> 00:12:02.960
Somehow, Brooke and her dad formed a temporary peace, and cautiously Brooke began visiting him once again.
00:12:04.799 --> 00:12:13.759
Mindful of Donna and Mark's negative influence, she took her dad away from Poplar Hill for leisurely drives and lunches.
00:12:14.240 --> 00:12:19.279
Brooke kept the conversation light, avoiding anything controversial.
00:12:19.600 --> 00:12:31.279
For the first time in years, the father and daughter were happy again with one another's company, even if only on a superficial level.
00:12:32.879 --> 00:12:46.399
In the spring and summer of 2023, Mark and Donna set a new low for attentive caregiving, leaving Bert for about six hours, six days a week.
00:12:47.279 --> 00:12:52.480
Mark wanted to fix up his wreck of a boat in advance of selling before it sank.
00:12:55.360 --> 00:12:57.840
Remember before the move in?
00:12:58.320 --> 00:13:04.799
Mark called Bert every single day at ten AM and seldom missed a daily visit.
00:13:05.039 --> 00:13:12.399
Now the creeps told Bert, We won't call you, and don't you call us except in an emergency.
00:13:13.120 --> 00:13:18.320
This for six or more hours a day for months.
00:13:18.960 --> 00:13:19.279
Dr.
00:13:19.519 --> 00:13:29.200
Kupara zeroed in on another caregiver oversight when ninety-nine year old Bert, accompanied by Brooke, came to follow up on an x-ray.
00:13:29.759 --> 00:13:31.759
Nice to see the two of you together.
00:13:32.000 --> 00:13:33.519
We're not enemies.
00:13:34.240 --> 00:13:35.600
How are you feeling, Mr.
00:13:35.759 --> 00:13:36.159
Cooper?
00:13:36.799 --> 00:13:37.440
Fine.
00:13:38.399 --> 00:13:42.879
Well, the x-ray I ordered reveal you have a broken rib.
00:13:43.200 --> 00:13:54.799
Now I'm concerned that you had a bad fall, and you have a broken rib, and that we only discovered it incidentally when you came in for your prescription refill.
00:13:55.279 --> 00:13:56.799
I'm concerned about that.
00:13:57.440 --> 00:13:58.879
I don't think I've broken.
00:13:59.519 --> 00:14:00.799
I didn't fall.
00:14:00.960 --> 00:14:02.240
I crumpled.
00:14:02.639 --> 00:14:03.840
Were you alone?
00:14:04.159 --> 00:14:06.480
Yeah, I I pushed myself up.
00:14:06.799 --> 00:14:08.320
It wasn't broken.
00:14:09.279 --> 00:14:11.120
You have a broken rib, Mr.
00:14:11.360 --> 00:14:11.919
Cooper.
00:14:12.159 --> 00:14:13.120
Number seven.
00:14:13.600 --> 00:14:14.639
Have I really?
00:14:15.200 --> 00:14:16.240
Good lord.
00:14:16.639 --> 00:14:20.879
When a senior has a bad fall, they should be taken to emergency.
00:14:21.279 --> 00:14:21.600
Oh.
00:14:22.480 --> 00:14:26.399
That would be the right thing to do, but that didn't happen.
00:14:28.799 --> 00:14:37.200
The vanishing of her dad's caregivers enhanced Brooke's fragile relationship with Bert as they continued to see one another.
00:14:37.519 --> 00:14:46.159
Brooke was extremely grateful for this precious private time with her dad, and I admit the pair seemed to have some fun.
00:14:47.440 --> 00:14:55.840
During this ceasefire, which lasted two years, Brooke gained many worrying glimpses into her dad's new life with his caregivers.
00:14:57.200 --> 00:15:03.360
Bert was still reluctant to challenge Mark, or Donna, over even the smallest of things.
00:15:03.679 --> 00:15:12.240
As an example, Bert made a point of telling Brooke he wouldn't ask Donna to cut his toenails until they hurt.
00:15:14.480 --> 00:15:21.360
There was an obvious imbalance of power with Mark at the top and Bert at the bottom.
00:15:21.759 --> 00:15:24.639
This concern was supported by psychiatrist Dr.
00:15:24.799 --> 00:15:32.240
Becker, who told Brooke that there was a ton of coercion in the relationship between her dad and the creeps.
00:15:34.159 --> 00:15:40.639
Bert's strong belief that Donna has had a tough life remained central in his mind.
00:15:41.360 --> 00:15:48.159
Bert told Brooke some erroneous details about one of Donna's former partners.
00:15:48.639 --> 00:16:02.960
Bert believed this man took all of Donna's savings, and at that time, Mark, surprise, surprise, financially bailed her out, which landed Donna in a position of obligation.
00:16:04.320 --> 00:16:14.240
Contrast this with Donna's own statement to Brooke a couple of years earlier, that in fact this partner number two was her knight in shining armor.
00:16:16.159 --> 00:16:23.840
Also, Bert continued to believe the tale about noble Donna walking away from a$2 million legal settlement.
00:16:24.240 --> 00:16:29.039
He often repeated his concern that she could never make that money up.
00:16:29.360 --> 00:16:41.039
So it became alarmingly clear to Brooke that her dad had believed for some years that he was now responsible for financially supporting poor had a hard life, Donna.
00:16:42.879 --> 00:16:55.440
As a curious aside, Bert easily overlooked the fact that Mark hadn't worked for over 23 years and was quite happy to let Donna subsidize him.
00:16:55.919 --> 00:17:01.360
Please, please tell me why Bert Cooper admires this useless man.
00:17:03.200 --> 00:17:15.119
Over the years, Bert's made a lot of strange and worrying comments to Brooke, but we've decided to reveal just a few provided during the two year ceasefire.
00:17:16.319 --> 00:17:28.640
Some of those illustrate that, despite living in his own home with his supposedly loving best friends, at times Bert appears fearful and uncomfortable.
00:17:30.079 --> 00:17:38.799
We're both so saddened by the truths hiding in some of Bert's statements, like Mark's in control of everything.
00:17:39.279 --> 00:17:43.839
It's a bit heavy handed, but you know, he's got all he ever wants.
00:17:46.720 --> 00:17:48.000
I could do without Mark.
00:17:48.640 --> 00:17:54.480
Don't ever tell him because he thinks that I love him dearly, but there is something about him that I don't like.
00:17:55.279 --> 00:17:56.960
His indifference to people.
00:17:57.599 --> 00:17:59.279
You know, I don't like that.
00:18:00.799 --> 00:18:03.119
Mark doesn't give a thought about me.
00:18:03.759 --> 00:18:05.759
I can't say I really like Mark.
00:18:06.319 --> 00:18:08.880
But he's awfully good to me in some respects.
00:18:11.759 --> 00:18:13.200
Donna's a real dear.
00:18:13.359 --> 00:18:16.400
She's nice to me, but she has a flaring temper.
00:18:17.119 --> 00:18:19.519
Just goes crazy for three or four minutes.
00:18:21.839 --> 00:18:27.759
I don't go into the room Mark's using as a studio because I'm afraid there may be a camera.
00:18:30.559 --> 00:18:38.960
During the last twenty-four months, Poplar Hill has undergone numerous renovations, all to benefit Mark and Donna.
00:18:39.440 --> 00:18:46.799
First up, new top-of-the-line kitchen and laundry appliances soon grace the now cluttered home.
00:18:47.039 --> 00:18:56.960
About a year later, a number of established trees took the ultimate hit to allow for a new metal roof and forty solar panels.
00:18:57.359 --> 00:19:10.240
I ask you, given an estimated twenty or so year payback, how much is old Bert going to benefit from this over$100,000 expense?
00:19:10.559 --> 00:19:21.279
And by the way, when Brooke discovered all this after the fact, of course, she offered to pay her share as usual, but Bert declined.
00:19:21.519 --> 00:19:24.160
A nice gesture from him, I think.
00:19:26.240 --> 00:19:43.519
When Mark and Bert applied to the municipality for a permit to take five trees down, Mark strongly inferred that he was Bert's son, and that Brooke was his difficult and estranged sister who wanted nothing to do with her dad or Poplar Hill.
00:19:43.839 --> 00:19:47.039
Come on, who lies like that?
00:19:48.000 --> 00:19:53.519
In May of 2024, all hell broke loose at Poplar Hill.
00:19:53.759 --> 00:20:08.160
In a classic underhanded move, Mark and Donna had a second driveway bulldozed across the Cooper's property without any permits and without Brooke's knowledge or involvement.
00:20:09.279 --> 00:20:18.640
After seeing a 200-foot gash being ripped through Poplar Hill's woody side yard, a neighbor complained to the municipality.
00:20:18.880 --> 00:20:25.200
The municipality reps immediately placed a stop work order and informed Brooke.
00:20:25.599 --> 00:20:29.359
Mark and Donna scrambled to protect themselves.
00:20:29.680 --> 00:20:34.079
First, they blamed the contractor for not getting the permits.
00:20:34.240 --> 00:20:38.319
Then they criticized the municipality for fudging its rules.
00:20:38.480 --> 00:20:43.359
And finally, they condemned Brooke for not signing the permits.
00:20:43.599 --> 00:20:53.359
Of course, Bert couldn't accept that his friends were in the wrong, so with a little nudge, he believed Brook was the culprit.
00:20:54.319 --> 00:21:10.079
Incredibly, the entire mess lasted months, with Mark endlessly submitting ridiculous legal arguments and was still an ongoing issue with the municipality in early 2025.
00:21:11.119 --> 00:21:29.599
The creeps wrote letters to our lawyer, to the municipality, and eventually to Brooke herself, trying to salvage the driveway disaster by boasting about their caregiving attributes and slandering Brook's personality, actions, and reputation.
00:21:30.720 --> 00:21:39.039
In a missive to Simon, Mark calls Brooke an apparently delusional client and states.
00:21:48.880 --> 00:21:54.319
To put it bluntly, she is lying to you and the municipality.
00:21:55.839 --> 00:21:59.599
This email addressed to Simon ends with a prophetic bang to
00:22:01.119 --> 00:22:02.640
Food for thought, Brook.
00:22:04.079 --> 00:22:08.960
The laws of karma are far more powerful than those made by a man.
00:22:09.759 --> 00:22:14.160
There's something highly satisfying when karma strikes.
00:22:15.359 --> 00:22:17.759
More about that prophetic bang later.
00:22:19.440 --> 00:22:26.000
In another letter, Donna writes directly to Brooke, supposedly on Bert's behalf.
00:22:26.640 --> 00:22:41.680
I feel deceived by you and your mom from keeping secret my name not being on the title of the home I've lived in at Poplar Hill since Diane and I, not you, purchased the home over thirty years ago.
00:22:42.240 --> 00:22:42.559
Okay.
00:22:43.839 --> 00:22:59.759
I won't trash the appalling syntax, but I will respond firstly by reminding you that lo those many years ago, Bert was with Diane and Brooke when the Coopers determined the ownership of Poplar Hill.
00:22:59.920 --> 00:23:04.720
And secondly, to let you in on one of our secrets.
00:23:05.039 --> 00:23:10.079
Brooke originally paid 24% of the purchase price of Poplar Hill.
00:23:10.319 --> 00:23:17.680
This because of the family plan that Brooke and I might move in sometime in the future to help out.
00:23:18.480 --> 00:23:23.359
In the same note, Bert supposedly also claims.
00:23:23.680 --> 00:23:27.200
Donna and Mark have put their lives on hold for me, Brooke.
00:23:27.519 --> 00:23:29.279
Can you say the same?
00:23:29.599 --> 00:23:34.160
I'm sure you'll forgive me while I scream and pound the wall for a moment.
00:23:34.480 --> 00:23:37.680
What self-serving hogwash.
00:23:38.240 --> 00:23:49.359
Prior to meeting vulnerable benefactor Bert Cooper, Mark and Donna were financially impoverished, living in a crummy rental and lacking pensions or assets.
00:23:49.920 --> 00:23:57.039
And now Donna, who formerly faced many years of full-time work, took early retirement.
00:23:57.279 --> 00:24:12.480
She now owned one half of a million dollar plus executive home, expected to receive twice as much cash upon Bert's death, and along with Mark was enjoying life as the Chatelaine of Poplar Hill.
00:24:12.720 --> 00:24:13.839
Good grief.
00:24:14.079 --> 00:24:20.240
If that's what Bert believes putting one's life on hold for him means, sign me the frig up.
00:24:22.000 --> 00:24:26.720
So enough of their petty, nasty vitriol.
00:24:26.960 --> 00:24:31.440
Suffice it to say, there was much, much more.
00:24:32.720 --> 00:24:32.960
Okay.
00:24:34.240 --> 00:24:44.240
As of 2025, Donna and Mark were still living with the now 101-year-old Bert in Poplar Hill.
00:24:45.359 --> 00:24:48.720
I'm nearing the end of recounting our saga.
00:24:48.960 --> 00:24:53.039
Though of course the saga itself has yet to end.
00:24:53.920 --> 00:25:02.079
But let's go out the way we came in, with Mark on stage taking control of Bert Cooper's life and assets.
00:25:02.799 --> 00:25:06.799
Brooke received a phone call from Franklin, a municipal staffer.
00:25:07.039 --> 00:25:14.000
Well, they had your dad pretty riled up, ready to go, bring him in basically to fight out the claim they're going to keep going with the driveway.
00:25:14.240 --> 00:25:18.640
Mark and Donna kept asking, Well, can we still use it as a driveway?
00:25:18.799 --> 00:25:22.160
I said, No, you're going to damage the tree roots again.
00:25:22.400 --> 00:25:24.160
You'll be up for fines again.
00:25:24.319 --> 00:25:26.079
They said, now, what are we going to do?
00:25:26.240 --> 00:25:30.799
I just said, not all owners agree on the driveway, and we need full agreement.
00:25:30.960 --> 00:25:32.880
So the driveway's off the books.
00:25:33.279 --> 00:25:39.119
That just there set Mark right off, and he rushes over to your dad, who's just sat down and starts mumbling to him.
00:25:39.359 --> 00:25:46.720
I don't think your dad said anything, except Mark comes running back to the counter and says, Bert's just said that he'd give Donna his share of Popper Hill.
00:25:47.039 --> 00:25:48.480
Can we have the driveway now?
00:25:48.720 --> 00:25:49.839
Oh my God.
00:25:50.160 --> 00:25:51.920
I said no, wouldn't make a difference.
00:25:52.079 --> 00:25:59.279
That really upset Mark to hear that you, Brooke, still have signing thirty, and we won't let things happen without your approval.
00:25:59.599 --> 00:26:00.400
Thank you.
00:26:00.720 --> 00:26:01.759
That's good.
00:26:02.240 --> 00:26:04.400
Mark does like to be in control.
00:26:05.119 --> 00:26:07.519
He doesn't like you to say no to him.
00:26:07.920 --> 00:26:10.960
But your dad was so fostered, Brooke, it was sickening.
00:26:11.039 --> 00:26:13.119
I had no time, no way of talking to him.
00:26:13.279 --> 00:26:15.839
He's pretty much convinced by this Mark and Donna.
00:26:16.240 --> 00:26:22.720
I really wish we had our front counter and camera, because that piece of footage probably would have been very good in your case.
00:26:23.759 --> 00:26:26.160
Do I even have to comment?
00:26:26.480 --> 00:26:27.200
Jeez.
00:26:28.720 --> 00:26:32.240
Remember my remark about a prophetic bang?
00:26:32.960 --> 00:26:37.759
Well, it appears we have our own bit of positive karma happening.
00:26:38.079 --> 00:26:46.160
Because one morning in March of 2025, Brooke received a phone call which brightened our world.
00:26:47.279 --> 00:26:50.960
Mark Marshall was dead.
00:26:52.000 --> 00:26:54.880
Taken out by a massive heart attack.
00:26:55.200 --> 00:26:58.720
I admit to wild and crazy dancing.
00:27:00.319 --> 00:27:05.519
This is truly one of those gifts that keeps on giving.
00:27:06.000 --> 00:27:12.720
It continually gives us hope, pleasure, and a little peace.
00:27:14.960 --> 00:27:24.160
As of this moment, Bert Cooper's alive, a hundred and two, and living in Poplar Hill with Donna.
00:27:24.799 --> 00:27:31.839
And far as we know, there have been no more visits from local health authority professionals or the police.
00:27:33.200 --> 00:27:40.160
Following Mark's death, Brooke girded her loins and visited her dad to offer condolences.
00:27:40.799 --> 00:27:48.880
Bert appeared unfazed by Mark's death and only demanded that Brooke sign the permits for the unauthorized driveway.
00:27:49.440 --> 00:27:55.839
Brooke refused and immediately left, her father's bellowing filling her ears.
00:27:57.519 --> 00:28:07.759
As I've mentioned, the stress and pain of the last seven years has changed Brooke and me.
00:28:08.799 --> 00:28:14.319
We've been hurt and regrettably we've hurt one another.
00:28:15.599 --> 00:28:21.759
Thankfully, our wounds are healing, but the scars remain.
00:28:23.200 --> 00:28:26.720
I often think how hard it's been for Bert.
00:28:27.359 --> 00:28:36.079
Instead of living in peace and enjoyment, his twilight years have been chaotic, troubled, and emotional.
00:28:37.119 --> 00:28:46.559
At this juncture, Brooke and I are, as the saying goes, bowed, but not broken.
00:28:47.759 --> 00:29:06.160
Today's episode features the voices of Susan Anderson as Nancy, Susan Wilkie as Brooke, Vi Glossip as Ann, Matt Watson as Phil, Andy Dawson Reed as Bert, Jason Stevens as Mark, Brooke Cooper and Nancy Miles as Joan, Jane Wynne as Donna, Sunaiti Arens as Dr.
00:29:06.319 --> 00:29:09.599
Kapar, and Dennis Lindquist as Franklin.
00:29:09.839 --> 00:29:11.920
This is a production of Radio Sydney.
00:29:12.000 --> 00:29:20.640
With support from the Government of Canada's New Horizons program for seniors, the series was produced by Bill Collins, written by Nancy Miles and Brooke Cooper.
00:29:20.799 --> 00:29:26.160
Dramatization was directed by Matt Watson with sound engineering by Bill Collins.
00:29:26.400 --> 00:29:28.000
I'm Barry Bowman.
00:29:33.680 --> 00:29:38.079
You've been listening to an original broadcast of Radio Sydney.
00:29:38.319 --> 00:29:45.039
Coming to you from the Mary Wynn Spears Center in downtown Sydney by the Sea in beautiful British Columbia.
00:29:45.599 --> 00:29:48.799
Thanks for listening, and please join us again.
